Teacher claims BTU mistreatment

Jessica M. Smith

Wednesday

Jun 27, 2007 at 12:01 AMJun 27, 2007 at 10:57 PM

A West Roxbury resident and former teacher at the West Roxbury Education Complex who alleged that this year’s Boston Teachers Union election was unfair has filed an official complaint with the commonwealth’s Labor Relations Commission.

John Glynn, a 52-year-old alternative education and history teacher who has worked for BPS since the 1970s, said in his complaint that the BTU and its agent, President Richard Stutman, engaged in “prohibitive practices.”

Specifically, Glynn alleged, that his right to run for president was “interfered [with] and restrained.”

A West Roxbury resident and former teacher at the West Roxbury Education Complex who alleged that this year’s Boston Teachers Union election was unfair has filed an official complaint with the commonwealth’s Labor Relations Commission.

John Glynn, a 52-year-old alternative education and history teacher who has worked for BPS since the 1970s, said in his complaint that the BTU and its agent, President Richard Stutman, engaged in “prohibitive practices.”

Specifically, Glynn alleged, that his right to run for president was “interfered [with] and restrained.”

According to Glynn’s complaint, Stutman, the incumbent, refused to provide him with the telephone numbers of BTU building representatives. He further alleged that this contact information, which he believes would have been integral to having a fair election, was provided to candidates during previous elections. In Glynn’s claim, he also stated that he was denied access to e-mail lists that he could have used to garner votes and endorsements. In his opinion, both he and the members of the BTU were denied a fair election.

“I asked for a fair and honest election and I’m still waiting on one,” said Glynn, who likened his situation to Watergate. “It’s about a president who had all the advantages and had to stoop to misconduct and that was very unfair.”

While representatives from the LRC could not comment on whether those running for an elected office of a union are entitled to the information that Glynn requested, Stutman said the claim had “no validity.”

“Anyone can make a charge … Charges are a dime a dozen. We’re not worried about it,” said Stutman, who would only further say that the complaint was an internal matter.

The BTU’s spokesperson agreed.

“It’s a baseless claim by an unsuccessful candidate,” said Steve Crawford, a public relations consultant who has worked with the teacher’s union for about six years. Crawford also declined to elaborate further.

Glynn’s decision to run for president of the BTU came because he “thought the union needed a change because it had become stale.”

It was the second time that he put himself in the running for an elected office of the organization that serves as the collective bargaining agent for about 8,000 BPS employees, including teachers, nurses and paraprofessionals. Previously, he said he was a building representative for the BTU.

Next, according to Edward Srednicki, the LRC’s executive secretary, Glynn will have until around mid-July to provide the commission with additional details of his allegations in writing. Then the BTU will be given a chance to respond and Glynn will have the opportunity to rebut the BTU, in writing. Following all that paperwork, Srednicki said there would likely be an investigation.

“We should be ready for the investigation in four to five months,” said Srednicki.